Lidl

Three chains are devouring the supermarket business in Spain year after year: Mercadona, Lidl and Aldi

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From ugly duckling to goose that lays the golden eggs. The white label revolution seems to find no ceiling in the retail Spanish. Until not so long ago, the brands associated with supermarkets carried a stigma in Spain compared to items from manufacturer brands clearly recognized by customers. It was not even strange for words like “Estandado” to be used in a pejorative way. Buying white was synonymous with buying ‘poor quality’‘option B’. Not anymore. Spanish families are increasingly betting on white label. And that is making gold for some of the country’s big chains. What has happened? That the white label is experiencing his particular revolution in it retail Spanish. And that is still striking if you take into account that until not so long ago, firms like Hacendado or Auchan carried a certain stigma compared to their competitors, the brands associated with manufacturers. It’s nothing new. For a long time we have been confirming how the white label is driving some chains of “short assortment”supermarkets that are committed to offering customers a limited selection of items. That is, instead of including a dozen different brands of cookies (or other items) on their shelves, they offer only two or one, among which they include their own brand. Chain Market share in value Difference (PP) compared to the 2024 quota Mercadona 37.0% 0.9 Carrefour Group 12.3% -0.2 Lidl 8.0% 0.5 Day Group 4.7% 0.1 Consum Group 4.5% 0.0 Eroski Group 4.4% -0.1 Alcampo Group 3.6% -0.3 aldi 2.5% 0.4 Bon Preu Group 2.4% 0.0 You save 23% 0.1 Gadis Group 1.7% 0.0 Magnifying glass 1.1% -0.1 El Corte Inglés Group 1.0% -0.2 dinosol 0.9% 0.0 Froiz 0.8% 0.0 Alimerka 0.8% 0.0 Rest of Modern distribution 12.0% -1.1 Why is it news? Because the latest data from 2025 reveal that this strategy is driving some brands to catapult them to unprecedented market shares. This is suggested by at least one recent report from Algori on consumption prepared with data from the first ten months of the year. The study shows that at the end of October the three chains that were gaining the greatest market share (in terms of value) in Spain were Mercadona (0.9 percentage points), Lidl (0.5 pp) and Aldi (0.4). Between the three, they also held a market share of 47.5%, a share clearly led by Juan Roig’s company, which alone holds 37%. DIA and Ahorramás are also growing, while others like Carrefour, Alcampo or Eroski are stagnating or decreasing. Chain % of white label sales 2023 % of white label sales 2024 % of white label sales 2025 Lidl 79.7% 81.9% 80.7% Mercadona 72.9% 74.5% 77.8% aldi 68.8% 69.1% 74.5% Day 54.2% 56.3% 65.1% consumption 33% 35.9% 37.4% Carrefour 29.3% 31.4% 33.3% Eroski 25.6% 28.4% 31.2% Alcampo 21.5% 24.3% 23.8% Why is it important? Because Mercadona, Lidl and Aldi are not just any chains. They are precisely the ones that give the greatest prominence to their own brands. At least according to another recent study from Worldpannel by Numerator, which shows that if we talk about the weight of private labels in total sales, Lidl heads the list with 80.7%, followed by Mercadona (77.8%) and Aldi (74.5%). In summary: the chains that gained the greatest market share in 2025 were the ones that most clearly opted for their own products, a strategy that often arrives backed by aggressive price differentiation. elEconomista.es precise Furthermore, Mercadona, Lidl and Aldi have increased their market shares to record figures. Their 47.5% share is more than two percentage points higher than last year, when they accounted for a total of 45.2% of the market. Everything, they explain from Algori, while the entire sector experiences growth both in terms of volume and value. And what are the forecasts? The sector is optimistic. AECOC, the consumer association, states in one of its latest reports that 44% of companies expect to close 2025 with growth data above 5%. 28% expect to increase their activity, although to a lesser extent, and 11% expect to fall. They are led by Lidl and especially Mercadona, which has been expanding its market share until it approaches or even surpasses 30% thanks to a strategy based on white label, territorial dispersion and ready-made foods. Images | Wikipedia and Vitaly Gariev (Unsplash) In Xataka | Mercadona has found a vein to grow beyond its white label and prepared food: tourism

Cheese and oil have skyrocketed so much in Türkiye that travel agencies have a star destination: a Lidl in Greece

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The cost of living has skyrocketed. Except the cocaine marketa multitude of basic products have risen in price when salaries have not grown at the same level. In Spain we have a year-on-year inflation of around 3%. In Türkiye, on the same date, it is 33%, and that is leading thousands of Turks to travel to Greece every week, and not for pleasure. But to Lidl for make the purchase. Supermarket migration. In the mid-2010s, the Greek economy was a drama. The purchasing power is collapsed and the country’s debt crisis forced many households to squeeze every euro. Neighboring countries that also used the euro were no consolation, so they looked east: to Türkiye. Within the economic context, the lira was cheap and the euro strong, so many Greeks, especially from the islands, went to Turkish bazaars and supermarkets to buy clothes, utensils and food. The ferries they were bursting. It is estimated that the cost per visit was about 120 euros and, since filling the shopping cart in Turkey was considerably cheaper, the Greeks bought large shipments of cheese, oil, meat and sausages. One of the “supermarket corridors” was Lesbos-Ayvalik, and in the middle of the decade spoke up to 100,000 visits annually. Now, the tables have turned. The tragedy of the lyre. More than two decades of controversial policiesamong other factors, have led to the collapse of the lira. The cost of imports has multiplied and the inflation rate does not reach 80% of a few years agobut it has stagnated at that more than 30% that is suffocating the population. It is something that is disproportionately affecting food, including basic necessities. Now it is the Turks who have enormous problems when buying fresh productsmeats, cheese and oil. The situation does not seem to be changing in the short term due to massive debt, default rates (with the penalty that entails) and that price increase in subsistence products. It is the “typical”: products that increase a lot and stagnant salaries, the perfect combination to ruin the purchasing power of families. To Lidl in the neighboring country. What is happening? That this dynamic of cross-border purchases has been completely reversed. If a decade ago it was the Greeks who crossed the border, now it is the Turks who, with a euro that is not so buoyant, but enough to make it worth it compared to the prices in their local markets, flock to Greece to make that weekly purchase. In a report by Bloomberg There are concrete figures that compare a Lidl in Alexandroupolis (about 40 kilometers from the Turkish border) and a Turkish Carrefour. For example, minced meat costs 9.36 euros per kilo in Greece, compared to 12.10 in Türkiye. Greek sausages cost half as much as Turkish ones, Gouda cheese costs a third and oil makes one of the biggest differences: 10 euros per liter in Greece compared to 20 in Turkey. Social networks. Social networks are a loudspeaker – let them tell it to the influencers from Australian mines-, and those who visit Greek cities to make purchases share their experience through networks such as TikTok. The word spreads and more citizens are encouraged to take the leap. For Alejandrópolis, it represents an injection of money for both food businesses and restaurants. Bloomberg details how, after a day of shopping, Turks have a drink in Greek restaurants while sharing the experience. and it esteem that there are 3,000 Turks who are making this weekly trip. travel agencies. Because if we have to define this it is as a need, yes, but also with that word: experience. Because although it may be something private for a family to do, travel agencies are organizing tours to Greek cities, with groups of supermarket tourists who do not want to visit the city, but rather the Lidl on duty. For about 50 euros, buses loads of Turkish shoppers leave on Friday afternoons and arrive in Greek cities on Saturday morning and spend three and a half hours in the supermarkets. Then they spend some free time around the citythey can go to eat and, in the afternoon, on the way home with a full cart. The biggest annoyance? Apart from having to go to another country to buy because in yours the cost of living is very expensive, of course, it is the line at border control. How long will this last? Türkiye trust to halve inflation by 2026, but it will still remain extremely high. We will see how long this situation lasts, which, from January to September of this year, has carried to the fact that 6% of the Turks who visited Greece did so only with the aim of filling the car. Images | Zoshua Colah, Aldin Nasrun In Xataka | Private labels are having an unexpected effect on the food industry: the biggest price drop since 2014

Lidl took a limited version of Dubai chocolate. Hours later I was exhausted gold price in Vinned

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The idea was good. At least on paper. A few days ago Lidl decided to delight cocoa lovers by selling, in a very limited way, its own version of the “Dubai chocolate”a delicatessen based on cocoa, pistachio and Kadayif Turk who despite his short life has managed to reach the Holy Grail of Modern Marketing: The virality In networks. For more Inri, Lidl sold its tablets for 4.49 euros, well below of what the brand that has popularized them cost, Fix dessert chocolatier. The problem is that Lidl’s offer lasted Only a few days. And that unleashed a Chocolate furywith tails in the super, early risers, Cabreos And also Some speculation. Chocolate obsession. That chocolate raises passions is not a novelty. If what we are talking about is “Dubai chocolate” However, passion directly becomes virality and obsession. Although the phenomenon around him is relatively recent and starts after In 2021 Fix dessert chocolatier The flavors of the Middle East will combine in a tablet with the classic chocolate, in just a few years the sweet Dubaiti origin has earned a legion of fans. Videos circulate (many, many) on networks How to prepare it at home, recordings of Influencers that They give their opinion about Its flavor, Explanations Why is it so popular, comments of pastry experts … And that Fix Dessert Chocolatier tablets are not exactly cheap. Much of his secret is in Your recipethat combines chocolate with milk, pistachio paste, tahini and kunafa mass or kataifi noodles. All in tablets of considerable thickness and with an outer touch. Click on the image to go to Tweet. Where there is an obsession … There is a good business. And that has not long to understand Fix Desert, but also other companies that have sought ways to take advantage of the enormous interest in these ounces of chocolate stuffed with pistachio. One of them was the Lidl supermarket chain, which a few days ago announced in networks The launch of a “Dubai” tablet prepared by JD Gross, its brand of “Premium chocolates”. His announcement generated considerable expectation (with more than 32,600 likes in the original Instagram publication and news about the launch in various media) and ended up combining three factors difficult to harmonize. Which is it? The expectation for the launch, the obsession around the Dubai chocolate and the haste. The Tablets of the German chain were put for sale by 4.49 eurosquite less than those of the Dubaiti brand, and (most importantly) for a very limited time. In Your adLidl already warned that they would be available in their stores only a few days: from Friday 21 to Sunday 23. And what happened? Scenes similar to those seen in stores during large pitches or remind of the golden years of the sales. Chocolate fever resulted in early risers and tails of customers who wanted to be the first to reach the sweet shelves. Maybe it seems exaggerated, but in Tiktok they can be seen some Videosof people who, despite being in a Lidl early in the morning they had run out of their Dubai tablet. “They have brought this. You explain to me where you go with this!” He complained a Tiktoker While teaching a small completely empty cardboard box in the chocolate section. “Everyone here at nine in the morning, logically with that small palace we have run out of Dubai chocolate. But well … we will continue trying.” It is not the only one. Others They opted directly for going to more supermarkets. From the shelves to Vinted. Not all those tablets sold in record time by Lidl ended up starring videos in networks, devoured or stored in the pantries of Dubai chocolate fans. A few ended in a very different place: second -hand sale platforms. In Vinned For example, ads could be found from individuals determined to take advantage of the very high demand of the sweet Emiratí. Of course, at prices quite superior to those who charged Lidl in his supermarkets. On Saturday a user He complained In X that the tablets that were on sale in stores for less than 5 euros were offered in Vinned for 20, 35, 50 or even 60 euros. “People who are selling Lidl’s Dubai chocolate in Vinned, you give a lot He complained On Friday another tweet. Looking at Spain … and beyond. Dubai chocolate fever is not exclusive to Spain. In the United Kingdom Lidl met A similar phenomenon When a limited edition of its Dubai -style chocolate is released: a surprising impact on networks and a delirious sales rhythm of 72 tablets per minute through its Tiktok channel, according to The data that manages The Grocer. In less than an hour and a half They had exhausted all stocks. The phenomenon is not exclusive to the German chain. Other brands have also tried to take advantage of the interest that the chocolate with a pistachio and Kadayifboth supermarket chains and chocolate companies or even small businesses. All often have a peculiarity: their chocolate is not exactly economic. The boards do not require an exorbitant disbursement, but the price per kilo is analyzed 37 or even 80 euros. Images | Tiktok and Lidl In Xataka | The secret for a healthier chocolate is in prebiotics and probiotics. And now we know the “recipe”

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